UNDP in Ethiopia

UNDP food security report in Africa to be honored for excellence

23 Aug 2013

The Africa Human Development Report 2012, titled Towards a Food-Secure Future, has won the 2013 HDR Award for Excellence, which honors every three years the best and most impactful Human Development Reports.

The awards, handed to national, sub-national and regional reports have helped advocate the core principles of the human development approach, encouraged innovation in research, demonstrated the use of the HDR as an advocacy tool and shared good practices in the human development community.

Launched in May 2012, the Africa Human Development Report argues that Sub-Saharan Africa cannot sustain its present economic resurgence and human development progress unless it eliminates the hunger that affects nearly a quarter of its people.

“This award acknowledges the report’s great achievement, which was to say that food security is a core development issue,” said Abdoulaye Mar Dieye, the Head of UNDP Africa.

“Hence addressing it is a long-term endeavor that requires multi-sectors and integrated interventions, with the recognition that national efforts need to be complemented by more concerted international action to strengthen food security in the poorest, smallest and most vulnerable countries and regions,” he added.

Arguing that action focused on agriculture alone will not end food insecurity, the report calls for new approaches covering sectors such as rural infrastructure, health services, new forms of social protection and actions to empower local communities.

Ensuring that the poor and vulnerable have greater voice through strengthened local government and civil society groups is also needed to ensure food security for all, the document argues.

The report will be recognized during the Global Human Development Forum, to be held in the United Arab Emirates in November, 2013. The event will bring together policy-makers, researchers, activists and civil society representatives around a global discussion on human development.

During the event, participants will also examine the recommendations of the 2013 Global Human Development Report, titled “The Rise of the South”, looking at the possibilities for accelerated human development across the planet, the role of emerging economies in global governance, and a number of key global issues such as the impact of austerity policies on the developing world.